Seven Experiments That Could Change the World


Book Description

Examines the realities of unexplained natural phenomenon and provides explanations that push the boundaries of science. • Looks at animal telepathy and the ability of pigeons to home. • Proves the point that "big questions don't need big science". • Noted scientist Rupert Sheldrake is a former research fellow of the Royal Society. • New Edition with an Update on Results. How does your pet "know" when you are coming home? How do pigeons "home"? Can people really feel a "phantom" amputated arm? These questions and more form the basis of Sheldrake's look at the world of contemporary science as he puts some of the most cherished assumptions of established science to the test. What Sheldrake discovers is that certain scientific beliefs are so widely taken for granted that they are no longer regarded as theories but are seen as scientific common sense. In the true spirit of science, Sheldrake examines seven of these beliefs. Refusing to let intellectual dogmatism influence his search for the truth, Sheldrake presents simple experiments that allow the curious and the skeptical to join in his journey of discovery. His experiments look at how scientific research is often biased against unexpected patterns that emerge and how a researcher's expectations can influence the results. He also examines the taboo of taking pets seriously and explores the question of human extrasensory perception. Perhaps most important, he questions the notion that science must be expensive in order to achieve important results, showing that inexpensive methods can indeed shake the very foundations of science as we know it. In this compelling and intelligent book, Sheldrake offers no preconceived wisdom or easy answers--just an open invitation to explore the unknown, create new science, and perhaps, even change the world.




Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age


Book Description

Watts, one of the principal architects of network theory, sets out to explain the innovative research that he and other scientists are spearheading to create a blueprint of this connected planet.




The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments


Book Description

A dazzling, irresistible collection of the ten most groundbreaking and beautiful experiments in scientific history. With the attention to detail of a historian and the storytelling ability of a novelist, New York Times science writer George Johnson celebrates these groundbreaking experiments and re-creates a time when the world seemed filled with mysterious forces and scientists were in awe of light, electricity, and the human body. Here, we see Galileo staring down gravity, Newton breaking apart light, and Pavlov studying his now famous dogs. This is science in its most creative, hands-on form, when ingenuity of the mind is the most useful tool in the lab and the rewards of a well-considered experiment are on exquisite display.




Historical Scientific Instruments in Contemporary Education


Book Description

When science’s “black boxes” are pried open, its workings become accessible. Like time-travellers into history but grounded in today’s cultures, learners interact directly with authentic instruments and replicas. Chapters describe educational experiences sparked through collaborations interrelating museum, school and university.




Newton


Book Description

Isaac Newton is now universally celebrated as a genius of science, renowned for his innovatory work on gravity and optics. Yet Newton did not always enjoy such legendary status. His posthumous reputation has constantly changed and is riddled with contradictions. NEWTON investigates the different ways in which Newton's life and works have been interpreted at different times. It charts his transformation into a scientific genius, explaining the changing attitude of the scientific community towards Newton's ideas, from Berkeley to Einstein. It also explores the making of Newton the national hero, through the myths that surround him and the many artistic and literary descriptions of him. NEWTON tells the fascinating story of Newton's reputation, shedding light on the growth of science generally and on our changing attitude towards our intellectual heritage. 'Fara's brilliant book is not so much a biography as the story of a phenomenon . . . fascinating' Scotsman 'Fara does not debunk Newton as recent novelists have but delivers him more whole and greater than ever' Sunday Herald







Discourse as Data


Book Description

Discourse as Data uses a step-by-step approach to introduce the principal range of methods for discourse analysis, and offers the reader practical opportunities to try out analytic concepts on new data. The contributors come from across the social sciences - each an expert in a different core method in discourse analysis.




The Mystery of Life Energy


Book Description

• Describes how energy therapies are now gaining acceptance due to irrefutable proof of their effectiveness for clinical conditions from PTSD to phantom limb pain • Examines the power of group energetics and team chemistry in sports and in society • Explains how megalithic sacred sites are aligned with Earth’s subtle energies and explores the energetics of crop circles and global consciousness Examining the wealth of evidence supporting the reality of the human biofield, Eric Leskowitz, M.D., explores the role of life energy in healing therapies and outlines its many manifestations at the individual, group, and global levels. He shows how energy therapies have been taboo in the West, from the French Royal Academy’s suppression of Franz Mesmer’s animal magnetism, to the FDA’s persecution of Wilhelm Reich and his orgone box therapy, to Wikipedia’s biased coverage of energy psychology. He then reveals irrefutable evidence for the clinical benefits of energy-based therapies and describes the obstacles he faced in his own attempts to bring these holistic approaches into the world of academic medicine. The author’s detailed exploration of phantom limb pain shows that this phenomenon is not a psychosomatic creation of the brain but is a tangible energetic structure: the human biofield in action. Exploring group energetics and team chemistry, he looks at how group situations— a concert, a meditation retreat, a sporting event—create their own energetic power. He shares the results of his innovative computer measurements during Red Sox baseball games, proving that group energies can be detected when fans become entrained in resonance to the larger field. He explores how Stonehenge and other megaliths were built in alignment with Earth’s own energy meridians, and he proposes that the mysterious phenomenon of crop circles may be emerging in harmony with Earth’s subtle energies. Blending hard science with ancient healing wisdom, the author reveals how we can all thrive together by remembering our shared energetic roots and our undeniable interconnectedness through the global web of life energy and consciousness itself.




The Discovery of Oxygen


Book Description